DOCSLIB.ORG

Security of Radioactive Sources the Evolving New International Dimensions

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Security of Radioactive Sources the Evolving New International Dimensions SECURITY OF RADIOACTIVE SOURCES THE EVOLVING NEW INTERNATIONAL DIMENSIONS BY ABEL J. GONZALEZ ecurity of radioactive also is known as a radiological moon-suited cleaning crews with sources has become an dispersal device, or RDD. Geiger counters in a big city Sissue of serious public Such a weapon would not downtown is bound to cause concern after the devastating create a nuclear explosion panic.” terrorist attacks of 11 Septem- with its dreaded mushroom The “dirty bomb”scenario is ber 2001. Yet it is worth cloud producing calcinating certainly not unique in the asking how serious the the heat, devastating shock waves menu of nuclear terror. problem actually is, given the and vast amounts of Nuclear installations with large fact that hundreds of radioactive fallout. radioactivity inventories, such dangerous chemicals and Although there have been as nuclear power plants and biological agents pose perhaps unfounded suggestions that a radioactive waste depositories, greater terrorist threats that dirty bomb explosion would can be attacked and their need to be urgently reduced. kill thousands and render radioactive materials dispersed. Radioactive sources do not entire cities uninhabitable, In the worst nightmare contain the type of nuclear these scenarios of devastation scenario, a nuclear weapon can materials that would allow are highly exaggerated. If such fall into terrorist hands, and someone to build a nuclear an attack actually occurred, the detonation of a nuclear 39 bomb and trigger a major the device would probably device with even a small catastrophe. Though scatter radioactive material nuclear yield in a major radioactive sources can be over a small area, restricting metropolitan area is sure to potentially dangerous for contamination to possibly a have devastating effects. anyone coming into close few city blocks. Casualties The odds of a radiological contact with them, they are affected by the radiation dispersal device falling into safely used in everyday life for would be limited, and the malevolent hands have medical care and treatment, perpetrators likely would be triggered particular public among other applications in harmed by direct radiation anxiety, perhaps because the fields of industry, agriculture, exposure from manipulating likelihood is perceived to be and science. the source. higher. Fears have been largely However, there is increasing However, even if an RDD augmented by the aftermath apprehension that radioactive would not injure many people, trauma caused by the New sources could be turned into a it could certainly cause much York and Washington attacks. terrorist tool — what the terror and psychological distress. Not surprisingly, security of media call a “dirty bomb”. The media recently stated that radioactive sources has been This term is used to describe a “in the wrong hands, even a placed high on the radioactive source shrouded relatively small amount of international agenda. by a conventional explosive radioactive material can cause The need for securing (similar to TNT), obviously the kind of low-grade terror seen radioactive sources is not new. built with malevolent intent. in the spate of anthrax-laced Security has always been If detonated in a public mail sent to US government and required for preventing domain, this mélange could media offices”. Moreover, they cause widespread reported that “terror, indeed, Mr. González is Director of the dissemination of radioactive appears to be a dirty bomb’s IAEA Division of Radiation and particles and for this reason it greatest attraction: the image of Waste Safety,. IAEA BULLETIN, 43/4/2001 CLARIFYING ISSUES & TERMS Safety & Security. Public apprehension generated by the new security dimension runs parallel with (and is perhaps enhanced by) confusion over technical terms and issues, often exacerbated by translation. The IAEA has long recognized this problem and comprehensively reported on it.* Safety and security — “sûreté and sécurité” — are two distinct terms in English and French; in many other major languages, a common word is used for these two concepts. Not surprisingly, therefore, many people wonder what the distinction is between safety and security. If they reached for their dictionaries, they would perhaps be none the wiser, because one of the definition of security is safety and vice versa. In the context of radiation sources, both words are used to denote a combination of administrative, technical and managerial features for two different purposes that can occasionally coincide but may also clash. radioactive elements such as cobalt-60 and caesium- ■ Safety of radiation sources is used to cover features 137, which are widely used in radiological medicine that diminish the likelihood of accidents with a source, and industry. A radioactive source never ceases to as a result of which people may be injured, as well as to emit radiation but the radiation intensity decays cover those that may mitigate the consequences of over time depending on the type of radioactive such mishaps. elements in the source. The term half-life is used to ■ Security of radiation sources refers to the features that indicate the period in which the radioactivity 40 prevent any unauthorized possession of the source and, decreases by half due to radioactive decay. For as a result, any non-permitted action with it. Security instance, as caesium-137 has a half-life of around 30 is achieved by ensuring that control of the source is years, a radiation source of this radioactive element not relinquished and improperly acquired. diminishes its intensity by half every 30 years. Radiation & Radioactive Sources. Frequently, the Security of Radioactive Sources: Clarifying Aims. terms radiation and radioactive are interchangeably Security of radioactive sources aims to ensure that misused to qualify a source. This misrepresentation control of radioactive materials is not relinquished has also been a cause of confusion. Some devices can be and improperly acquired, therefore preventing such sources of radiation without necessarily being materials from going astray and causing harm to “radioactive”. people and the environment or from being diverted ■ Typical non-radioactive radiation sources are various for malevolent acts such as terrorism. While safety is types of electrical generators of radiation, such as X-ray of relevance to all types of radiation sources, either machines and particle accelerators, which emit non-radioactive or radioactive, security is usually radiation while in operation but whose emitting limited to radioactive sources alone. properties cease as soon as the electricity supply is cut. Sometimes safety and security oppose each other: ■ Conversely, radioactive radiation sources (or for instance, the clear marking of radioactive sources radioactive sources for short) contain radioactive is imposed on safety grounds, but it makes materials, namely substances formed by radioactive radioactive sources more vulnerable to security elements emitting radiation themselves (the so-called breaches. The dichotomy has become evident in radioactive elements). Typical examples of discussions of the controversial issue of transporting radioactive sources are the sealed capsules containing radioactive sources by sea: while many coastal States request that comprehensive information on sources *See Vol. 41, No. 3, which covers issues of radiation being transported near their shores must be provided safety and security, accessible on the IAEA’s by transporter States because of safety, the latter WorldAtom site at http://www.iaea.org/worldatom/ prefer to keep information restricted for reasons of Periodicals/Bulletin. security. IAEA BULLETIN, 43/4/2001 radioactive materials going nuclear power production. radiation source in contact with astray, and, as a result, causing Nuclear materials, devices and tissue (a technique usually harm to people. Security of facilities are both scarcer and called brachytherapy, which radioactive sources has always better secured than radioactive comprises the interstitial been an important component sources. intracavitary, intraluminal, and of the IAEA radiation safety Abundance of Radioactive superficial applications of programme. In mid-1999, the Sources. Radioactive sources sources). Teletherapy can also be IAEA Bulletin (Vol. 41, No.3) are extensively and commonly performed with “accelerators”, a covered it extensively in an used in a wide range of non-radioactive radiation source edition, focusing on the IAEA medical, industrial, agricultural which, as the X-ray machines, response to key problems. and research applications. They do not present an evident Today, in the face of the vary widely in physical size and security threat. new challenges presented by properties, their amount of Many medical sources are the recent terrorist attacks, a radioactivity, and ease of mainly made from the new dimension of security access. The radioactivity of a radioactive element termed emerges: deterring the source is measured in units cobalt-60, which is a metal and diversion of radioactive termed becquerel (abbreviated has a half-life of around 5 years. materials from legal to illegal Bq). Years ago the unit termed Less frequently, the radioactive and criminal uses – such as curie (Ci) was widely employed element caesium-137, with a terrorist violence. The IAEA is and is still used. One becquerel half-life of around 30 years, is adjusting its response to this is a tiny amount of radio- employed. Many caesium new and remarkable reality. In activity.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • What Every Public Safety Officer Should Know About Radiation and Radioactive Materials: a Resource Guide
    NATIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CORRECTIONS TECHNOLOGY CENTER A program of the National Institute of Justice From Summer 2003 TechBeat TECH b • e • a • t Dedicated to Reporting Developments in Technology for Law Enforcement, Corrections, and Forensic Sciences What Every Public Safety Officer Should Know About Radiation and Radioactive Materials: A Resource Guide his resource guide provides a broad list of sources of www.atsdr.cdc.gov/mhmi.html T information and guidance for law enforcement officers, Links to a three-volume planning guide (with accompany- firefighters, emergency medical personnel, and other public ing video) to help first responders, both onscene and at safety officers who may be the first responders to a terrorist the hospital, with the medical management of patients attack in which a nonnuclear radiological device (known exposed during a hazardous materials incident. as a radiological dispersal device (RDD) or a “dirty bomb”) is used. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Environmental Health, Radiation Studies These resources will help departments and agencies Casualty Management After a Deliberate Release of develop and update procedural guidelines and personnel Radioactive Material. training. Also covered are resources for response, equip- www.bt.cdc.gov/radiation/casualtiesradioactive.asp ment funding, and general information. Recommends immediate actions for police, firefighters, Although many of the following resources provide and emergency medical technicians who may be faced links to other websites, the list should not be considered with a nuclear terrorist act. all inclusive. A number of other government and non- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National government organizations also provide publications, Center for Environmental Health, Radiation Studies guidelines, information, and training for first responders.
    [Show full text]
  • REDUCING the THREAT of a SERIOUS 137Cs DIRTY BOMB
    Reprinted from the Proceedings of the Department of Homeland Security Conference: Working Together - Research & Development (R&D) Partnerships in Homeland Security, Boston, MA, April 27–28, Science and Technology Directorate REDUCING THE THREAT OF A SERIOUS 137Cs DIRTY BOMB James L. Conca, Jacob R. Wischnewsky and Michael D. Johnson New Mexico State University CEMRC 1400 University Drive Carlsbad, New Mexico 88220 ABSTRACT Presently, one of the gravest anticipated terrorist threats to the United States, the United Kingdom and European Union countries involves a class of weapons known as radiation dispersal devices (RDDs) or dirty bombs. Dirty bombs use a conventional bomb, such as a car bomb, to disperse radioactive materials in a populated area to cause great economic and social disruption disproportionate to their actual radiological effects and well beyond the physical destruction from their conventional bomb components. A program is underway to greatly reduce the threat of a serious dirty bomb attack by 2010. The severity of the long-term threat of dirty bombs to our national security will depend upon finding alternative matrices for the radioactive sources best suited for use in dirty bombs, e.g., the 137CsCl powder that is a standard material used in industrial irradiators and the rapidly-growing sterilization industry. Cumulatively, 137CsCl powder has the greatest dispersibility, penetrating radiation, and specific activity (highest levels of radioactivity per mass of material) of all potential RDD materials. Our research has shown that a combination of a simple, inexpensive technical step in the production of 137CsCl for use in the sterilization industry, plus focused legislation and international treaties, can substantially reduce the threat of a devastating 137Cs dirty bomb.
    [Show full text]
  • Maritime Security: Potential Terrorist Attacks and Protection Priorities
    Order Code RL33787 Maritime Security: Potential Terrorist Attacks and Protection Priorities Updated May 14, 2007 Paul W. Parfomak and John Frittelli Resources, Science, and Industry Division Maritime Security: Potential Terrorist Attacks and Protection Priorities Summary A key challenge for U.S. policy makers is prioritizing the nation’s maritime security activities among a virtually unlimited number of potential attack scenarios. While individual scenarios have distinct features, they may be characterized along five common dimensions: perpetrators, objectives, locations, targets, and tactics. In many cases, such scenarios have been identified as part of security preparedness exercises, security assessments, security grant administration, and policy debate. There are far more potential attack scenarios than likely ones, and far more than could be meaningfully addressed with limited counter-terrorism resources. There are a number of logical approaches to prioritizing maritime security activities. One approach is to emphasize diversity, devoting available counter- terrorism resources to a broadly representative sample of credible scenarios. Another approach is to focus counter-terrorism resources on only the scenarios of greatest concern based on overall risk, potential consequence, likelihood, or related metrics. U.S. maritime security agencies appear to have followed policies consistent with one or the other of these approaches in federally-supported port security exercises and grant programs. Legislators often appear to focus attention on a small number of potentially catastrophic scenarios. Clear perspectives on the nature and likelihood of specific types of maritime terrorist attacks are essential for prioritizing the nation’s maritime anti-terrorism activities. In practice, however, there has been considerable public debate about the likelihood of scenarios frequently given high priority by federal policy makers, such as nuclear or “dirty” bombs smuggled in shipping containers, liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker attacks, and attacks on passenger ferries.
    [Show full text]
  • Backgrounder: Dirty Bombs
    h Dirty Bombs A “dirty bomb” is a type of “radiological dispersal device” that combines a conventional explosive, such as dynamite, with radioactive material. The terms dirty bomb and RDD are often used interchangeably. Most RDDs would not release enough radiation to kill people or cause severe illness – the conventional explosive itself would be more harmful to people than the radioactive material. However, an RDD explosion could create fear and panic, contaminate property and require potentially costly cleanup. A dirty bomb is not a nuclear bomb. A nuclear bomb creates an explosion that is millions of times more powerful than a dirty bomb. The cloud of radiation from a nuclear bomb could spread thousands of square miles, whereas a dirty bomb’s radiation could be dispersed within a few blocks or miles of the explosion. A dirty bomb is not a “weapon of mass destruction” but a “weapon of mass disruption,” where contamination and anxiety are the major objectives. Impact of a Dirty Bomb The extent of local contamination would depend on a number of factors, including the size of the explosive, the amount and type of radioactive material used, the means of dispersal, and weather conditions. Those closest to the RDD would be the most likely to be injured by the explosion. As radioactive material spreads, it becomes less concentrated and less harmful. Prompt detection of the type of radioactive material used will greatly assist local authorities in advising the community on protective measures, such as sheltering in place or quickly leaving the immediate area. Radiation can be readily detected with equipment already carried by many emergency responders.
    [Show full text]
  • Michael German, Fellow
    Written Testimony of Michael German, Fellow Brennan Center for Justice at New York University Law School Hearing Before the Oregon Legislative Assembly Joint Committee Task Force On Transparent Policing and Use of Force Reform Thursday, July 8, 2020 Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law 120 Broadway, Suite 1750 New York, NY 10271 Co-chair Manning, co-chair Bynum, and members of the Joint Committee Task Force, thank you for inviting me to testify today about the infiltration of law enforcement by white supremacist and far-right militants, and the motivations of the various entities participating in far-right and police accountability protests. The FBI’s 2015 Counterterrorism Policy Guide warns that, “Domestic terrorism investigations focused on militia extremists, white supremacist extremists, and sovereign citizen extremists often have identified active links to law enforcement officers…”1 This alarming declaration followed a 2006 intelligence assessment, based on FBI investigations and open sources, that warned of “white supremacist infiltration of law enforcement by organized groups and by self-initiated infiltration by law enforcement personnel sympathetic to white supremacist causes.”2 These warnings echo concerns FBI leadership and Joint Terrorism Task Force members expressed to me during investigations I participated in the 1990s as an FBI special agent, working undercover in neo-Nazi groups in Los Angeles and militia groups in Washington State. Obviously, only a tiny percentage of law enforcement officials are likely to be active members of white supremacist groups. But one doesn’t need access to secretive intelligence gathered in FBI terrorism investigations to find evidence of overt and explicit racism within law enforcement.
    [Show full text]
  • Radiological Attack to Monitor Potential Health Effects
    Delayed Health Effects of Radiation “The ease of recovery from [a radi­ One concern of radiation exposure is an elevated risk of developing cancer later in life, although ological] attack would depend to a studies have shown that radiation is a relatively weak carcinogen. Exposure at the low radiation doses NEWS &TERRORISM expected from an RDD would increase the risk of cancer only slightly over naturally occurring rates. COMMUNICATING IN A CRISIS great extent on how the attack was Long-term health studies on the survivors of the 1945 nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki A fact sheet from the National Academies and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security handled by first responders, political indicate that for those who received radiation doses from 0 up to 10 rems, less than 1% of cancers in leaders, and the news media, all of that population were attributable to radiation. A long-term medical surveillance program might be which would help to shape public established for victims of a significant radiological attack to monitor potential health effects. opinion and reactions.” Economic Impact —Making the Nation Safer Such impacts might involve disruption to lives and livelihoods as the contaminated area is being National Research Council (2002) cleaned up. This impact could continue even after the site has been cleaned up if people are reluc- tant to return to the affected area. RADIOLOGICAL ATTACK DIRTY BOMBS AND OTHER DEVICES WHAT IS IT? A radiological attack is the spreading of radioactive material with the intent to do harm. Radioactive materials are used every day in labo­ ratories, medical centers, food irradiation plants, and for industrial What is ionizing radiation? ADDITIONAL INFORMATION uses.
    [Show full text]
  • Recognizing the Threat of Bioterrorism
    Recognizing the Threat of Bioterrorism USF Center for Biological Defense www.bt.usf.edu Types of Terrorism •Chemical •Biological •Radiological or “Dirty – Bomb” •Nuclear •Explosive Bioterrorism • The application of biologic agents or their toxins as a weapon against people, animals or crops. • Most confirmed cases have involved biocrimes rather than bioterrorism or biowarfare. Category A Agents • Anthrax (Bacillus anthracis) • Botulism (Clostridium botulinum toxin) • Plague (Yersinia pestis) • Smallpox (Variola major) • Tularemia (Francisella tularensis) • Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (Filoviruses [e.g., Ebola, Marburg] and Arenaviruses [e.g., Lassa, Machupo]) Category B Agents • Brucellosis (Brucella species) • Epsilon toxin of Clostridium perfringens • Food safety threats (e.g., Salmonella species, Escherichia coli O157:H7, Shigella) • Glanders (Burkholderia mallei) • Melioidosis (Burkholderia pseudomallei) • Psittacosis (Chlamydia psittaci) • Q fever (Coxiella burnetii) • Ricin toxin from Ricinus communis (castor beans) • Staphylococcal enterotoxin B • Typhus fever (Rickettsia prowazekii) • Viral encephalitis (alphaviruses [e.g., Venezuelan equine encephalitis, eastern equine encephalitis, western equine encephalitis]) • Water safety threats (e.g., Vibrio cholerae, Cryptosporidium parvum) Category C Agents . Emerging infectious disease threats such as: • Nipah Virus • Hanta Virus • SARS • Avian Flu (H5N1) • Swine Flu (H1N1) • West Nile Virus • Genetically Engineered Threats Why Use Biological Agents? • Cheap, Relatively Simple Propagation
    [Show full text]
  • Risk Analysis of Urban Dirty Bomb Attacking Based on Bayesian Network
    sustainability Article Risk Analysis of Urban Dirty Bomb Attacking Based on Bayesian Network Zheng Tang 1 , Yijia Li 1 , Xiaofeng Hu 1,* and Huanggang Wu 2 1 School of Information Technology and Network Security, People’s Public Security University of China, Beijing 102628, China; [email protected] (Z.T.); [email protected] (Y.L.) 2 School of International Police Studies, People’s Public Security University of China, Beijing 102628, China; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected] Received: 26 October 2018; Accepted: 2 January 2019; Published: 9 January 2019 Abstract: Urban dirty bomb attacking is a type of unconventional terrorism threatening the urban security all through the world. In this paper, a Bayesian network of urban dirty bomb attacking is established to analyze the risk of urban dirty bomb attacking. The impacts of factors such as occurrence time, location, wind fields, the size of dirty bomb, emergency response and defense approaches on casualty from both direct blast and radiation-caused cancers are examined. Results show that sensitivity of casualty from cancers to wind fields are less significant; the impact of emergency response on the direct casualty from blast is not large; the size of the dirty bomb results in more casualties from cancers than that from bomb explosions; Whether an attack is detected by the police is not that related to normal or special time, but significantly depends on the attack location; Furthermore, casualty from cancers significantly depends on the location, while casualty from blast is not considerably influenced by the attacking location; patrol and surveillance are less important than security check in terms of controlling the risk of urban dirt bomb, and security check is the most effective approach to decreasing the risk of urban dirty bomb.
    [Show full text]
  • PERSONAL PREPAREDNESS GUIDE Radiological Attacks: Dirty Bomb
    PERSONAL PREPAREDNESS GUIDE Radiological Attacks: Dirty Bomb What It Is: A dirty bomb, or radiological dispersal device (RDD), combines conventional explosives, such as dynamite, with radioactive material, such as spent nuclear reactor fuel rods. The device is designed to kill or injure by creating a zone of intense radiation that could extend several city blocks. People in the immediate vicinity of the blast would be killed. It is unlikely that the radioactive material contained in a dirty bomb would kill anyone. The radioactive material would be dispersed into the air and reduced to relatively low concentrations, resulting in low doses to people exposed. A low-level exposure to radioactive contamination could slightly increase the long-term risk of cancer. However, exposure to radiation at higher levels could result in radiation sickness or radiation poisoning. In addition, dirty bombs have a significant psychological impact - causing fear, panic and disruption. Symptoms: The extent of radiation contamination depends on a number of factors including the size of the explosive, the amount and type of radioactive material used, and weather conditions. The symptoms of radiation sickness include nausea and vomiting; diarrhea; skin burns (redness, blistering); weakness, fatigue, exhaustion, fainting dehydration; inflammation of areas (redness, tenderness, swelling, bleeding); hair loss; ulceration of the mouth; ulceration of the esophagus and the remainder of the gastrointestinal system; vomiting blood, bloody stool; bleeding from the nose, mouth, gums, and rectum bruising; sloughing of skin; open sores on the skin. Prevention/Treatment: Radiation cannot be detected by human senses. However, a variety of instruments are available for detecting and measuring radiation.
    [Show full text]
  • "Dirty Bombs": Technical Background, Attack Prevention And
    “Dirty Bombs”: Technical Background, Attack Prevention and Response, Issues for Congress Jonathan Medalia Specialist in Nuclear Weapons Policy June 24, 2011 Congressional Research Service 7-5700 www.crs.gov R41890 CRS Report for Congress Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress “Dirty Bombs”: Technical Background, Attack Prevention and Response Summary Congress has long sought, through legislation and oversight, to protect the United States against terrorist threats, especially from chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) weapons. Radiological dispersal devices (RDDs) are one type of CBRN weapon. Explosive-driven “dirty bombs” are an often-discussed type of RDD, though radioactive material can also be dispersed in other ways. This report provides background for understanding the RDD threat and responses, and presents issues for Congress. Radioactive material is the necessary ingredient for an RDD. This material is composed of atoms that decay, emitting radiation. Some types and amounts of radiation are harmful to human health. Terrorists have shown some interest in RDDs. They could use them in an attempt to disperse radioactive material to cause panic, area denial, and economic dislocation. While RDDs would be far less harmful than nuclear weapons, they are much simpler to build and the needed materials are used worldwide. Accordingly, some believe terrorists would be more likely to use RDDs than nuclear weapons. Key points include: • RDDs could contaminate areas with radioactive material, increasing long-term cancer risks, but would probably kill few people promptly. Nuclear weapons could destroy much of a city, kill tens of thousands of people, and contaminate much larger areas with fallout. • Cleanup cost after an RDD attack could range from less than a billion dollars to tens of billions of dollars, depending on area contaminated, decontamination technologies used, and level of cleanup required.
    [Show full text]
  • Al-Qaeda and Weapons of Mass Destruction
    REPORT DOES INTENT EQUAL CAPABILITY? Al-Qaeda and Weapons of Mass Destruction Sammy Salama and Lydia Hansell The prospect of terrorists deploying weapons of mass destruction (WMD) is often referred to as the foremost danger to American national security. This danger has become more realistic because of al-Qaeda’s expanding global network and the expressed willingness to kill thousands of civilians. In the past four years, numerous media reports have documented the group’s ongoing quest for WMD capabilities; many reports have detailed al-Qaeda members’ attempts to manufacture or obtain certain chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) agents to use in WMD against targets in the West and the Middle East. Yet the question remains: Does al-Qaeda’s current WMD capability match its actual intent? While most studies of the group have focused on its explicit desire for WMD, allegations of CBRN acquisition, and the killing potential of specific CBRN agents, few open-source studies have closely examined the evolution of al-Qaeda’s consideration of WMD and, most notably, the merit of actual CBRN production instructions as depicted and disseminated in the group’s own literature and manuals. The following report will examine the history of al-Qaeda’s interest in CBRN agents, the evolution of the network’s attitude toward these weapons, and the internal debate within the organization concerning acquisition and use of WMD. More so, the following research will assess the validity of actual CBRN production instructions and capabilities as displayed and disseminated in al-Qaeda’s own literature and websites. KEYWORDS: Al-Qaeda; Terrorism; WMD terrorism; Nuclear; Biological; Chemical; Radiological; CBRN; Terrorist manuals; Uranium; Radium; Plague; Ricin; Cyanide; Hydrogen sulfide; Mustard gas; Botulinum toxin; Cesium 137; RDD; Dirty bomb; Osama Bin Laden; Abu Musab - al Zarqawi; Nuclear preparation encyclopedia; WMD Fatwa The prospect of terrorists deploying weapons of mass destruction (WMD) is the foremost danger to U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Fixed and Mobile Bodies: Mass Casualty Plans and Survivalism for ‘Dirty Bomb’ Attacks
    CHAPTER 7 FIXED AND MOBILE BODIES: MASS CASUALTY PLANS AND SURVIVALISM FOR ‘DIRTY BOMB’ ATTACKS INTRODUCTION In a post cold-war world CBRNe (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and explosive) weapons and devices are considered to be one of the greatest challenges facing emergency planners. Although the consequences of these weapons and devices are very different the grouping of them together in one category is significant. The shifting of acronyms from ABC (Atomic, Biological and Chemical) to NBC (Nuclear, Biological and Chemical) with more powerful devices in the Cold War gave way to CBRN and CBRNe with a Millennial focus on terrorism and the search for WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction). The grouping of the latter two is significant in that the deployment of CBRNe does not necessarily imply mass destruction. In the polonium poisoning of Alexander Litvenenko (2006) which was certainly ‘R’ and the Aum Shinrikyo attacks on the Tokyo underground with Sarin gas (‘C’) there were significant casualties, contamination and risk but certainly not the mass destruction which has been associated with conventional explosives, military equipment and civil nuclear disasters (Chernobyl, Three Mile Island and, most recently, Fukushima). However, they have gained a level of moral asymmetry in the enterprise of ‘Homeland Security’ and CBRNe weapons and devices are considered to be one of the greatest challenges facing emergency planners. In discourse on CBRNe linguistic tensions exist. On the one hand emergency planners consider the scientific principles behind dealing with CBRNe incidents in a rational and technicist fashion but on the other they use forms of rhetoric signifying that the effects and consequences of CBRNe are beyond description and beyond the usual form of words requiring new grammars and vocabularies (‘Hot Zones’, ‘Gold Commanders’ and CBRNe itself).
    [Show full text]